American archbishop appointed nuncio to Great Britain

Archbishop Edward Joseph Adams is a lifelong diplomat who has served as nuncio to Bangladesh and the Philippines

An American archbishop who has served as nuncio to Bangladesh, Zimbabwe and the Philippines has been appointed the Holy See’s ambassador to Great Britain.

He replaces Archbishop Antonio Mennini, who earlier this year was transferred to the Secretariat of State, the Vatican department responsible for relations with states.

For the last six years Archbishop Edward Joseph Adams, 72, has been nuncio to Greece.

He grew up in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and was ordained a priest in 1970 by the city’s then archbishop, Cardinal John Krol. He began his career as a diplomat in 1976 after completing advanced studies in Rome.

He was consecrated archbishop in 1996 by Cardinal Angelo Sodano, then Vatican Secretary of State. That year he was also appointed nuncio to Bangladesh.

Cardinal Vincent Nichols, president of the Bishops’ Conference of England and Wales, extended Archbishop Adams “the warmest of welcomes” and gave him an “assurance of prayers as he takes up his new office”, according to a press statement.

Archbishop Philip Tartaglia, president of the Bishops’ Conference of Scotland, said: “On behalf of the bishops’ conference and of the whole Catholic community of Scotland, I welcome the appointment of the new Apostolic Nuncio and offer him our prayerful good wishes for his important service as nuncio. Together with all the Scottish bishops, I look forward to welcoming Archbishop Adams to Scotland in due course.”